The World is Flat

Thomas Friedman first coined the phrase, “the world is flat” in his book by the same name. It has to deal with ecomonic globalization and how it has put companies, large and small, on an even playing field.
Michigan is having problems getting into the game. We have had an unprecedented six years of declining employment and what makes it worse is that the rest of the country has been on a three year recovery.

But here in the D’ concerned citizens are doing something about it. Organizatins like Create-Detroit, Michigan FutureInc. and Detroit Synergy are all creating ideas for, not only recruiting young professionals to the City but retaining them as well.

They include attracting qualified graduates with student loan payments of up to a year and housing subsidies along with CEO’s of major companies who will offer the job opportunities for them.

These efforts put forth will drag Detroit into the 21st Century and help insure its future as a healthy and vibrant community with a growing economy. They are always looking for volunteers so if you think you would like to contribute, they are waiting with open arms.

2 Comments so far

I don’t really understand the function of these organizations – they just seem like fancy social clubs or something.

What Detroit really needs to attract young professionals (this is coming from a “young professional” myself) is the following:

1) A competent city government who makes living in the city feasible (see taxes and red-lining)
2) A business culture that attracts both small professional service firms and large firms (like Ann Arbor!)

Period. Organizations like Detroit Synergy can talk about how great Detroit is and all, but none of it means anything if there are no high paying jobs and the local politicians really aren’t even trying to change things.

Educated young people aren’t going to move to the city to work in a McDonalds or a Church’s Chicken no matter how great we say the culture and lifestyle is.

Hm. Organizations like Detroit Synergy are what you make them. Do you want to address the City government? Develop a project and use the marketing, financial and manpower resources available to you to do something about it! I’m sure you’re not alone, and these organizations will help you get it done.

Besides that, what’s wrong with improving the social environment in the City as well? What about public transit? Education? Aren’t these important, too?

Oh, and by the way, “redlining” is illegal and is tightly regulated. It’s just a good, dramatic term that people use incorrectly to evoke a reaction to get fired up about the City. I’d bet you lunch that that it costs insurance companies more to fix (or replace) cars in Detroit than it does in the ‘burbs. They can’t do business by operating at a loss, so where do you propose that money comes from?

Detroit Census TriplicationMollika* I had to return a fourth survey. I am representing the non-Doctor Indian population of Detroit :0)likwidshoe It’s all about representation, not funding. Detroiters needs to lose the entitlement mindset.